Homestyle Lasagna

One of my favorite comfort foods is lasagna. A couple of weeks ago when my parents were in town to take care of me while I had my surgery, my mom and I made lasagna. This is a family recipe which I alter just slighly by putting cheese on top.


Classic Lasagna

1 lb ground beef
1 clove fresh garlic, pressed
1 t dried parsley flakes
1 t dried sweet basil
1 t dried crushed oregano
1 T sugar (you can used Splenda)
1/2 t pepper
Salt to taste
1 can tomato paste
1 can tomato sauce
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes (I love using home-canned tomatoes)
1/2 C grated Parmesan cheese
2 (12 oz) package of cottage cheese
1 lb shredded Mozzarella cheese
8 lasagna noodles
2 eggs beaten

Cook beef until browned, stirring to crumble; drain the fat. Add garlic and next 9 ingredients; simmer 15 minutes or until think, stirring occasionally. Cook lasagna noodles according to the package directions; drain. Combine eggs, cottage cheese, pepper, and Parmesan cheese, stirring well. Spread about 1/2 C meat sauce in a greased 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking dish. Layer half each of noodles, cottage cheese mixture, mozzarella cheese, and meat sauce. Repeat layers. Cover and bake at 350 for 30 minutes; let stand 10 minutes.